Smartphone app for renewable energy info launched in UAE

A new smartphone app has been launched in Abu Dhabi, allowing users to know what is happening in the renewable energy sector across the world.

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) launched the innovative environmental app on Tuesday with details of global renewable energy sector from isolated islands to remote deserts.

The Global Atlas Pocket app allows users to access the most reliable data on global renewable energy potential. It turns mobile devices into renewable energy prospectors. It is available on all platforms including BlackBerry, iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

The only global tool of its kind, the app combines 1,000 maps from 67 governments and 50 data centres to provide information on renewable energy resources anywhere in the world.

"One of the major hurdles to worldwide renewable energy deployment is to mobilise investment flows commensurate with global needs," said Adnan Z Amin, IRENA Director-General.

"The Global Atlas pocket helps bring more investment certainty to renewable energy prospectors and investors. Users can freely access data from geothermal potentials in the Caribbean to solar potentials in the Middle East and anything in between.

It is an incredibly powerful tool," Amin said. Users can screen renewable energy project sites before making investment decision, create content on clean energy potentials in areas of interest and access images of growth areas for renewable energy infrastructure opportunities.

It also comes with a combination of search functionalities including geolocation services, personalised search categories, map views and sharing capabilities. The app is the mobile version of the online Global Atlas portal which aims to provide access to the necessary datasets, expertise and financial support to help countries evaluate their national renewable energy potential.

Anita Marangoly George, Senior Director of the World Bank's Energy and Extractives Global Practice, said through its Energy Sector Management Assistance Program, the WB is making data-rich renewable energy resource maps of 12 developing countries available through IRENA's Global Atlas.